President Opposed To Joint USA-Mexico World Cup Despite FIFA’s Approval

UPDATE: United States Soccer Federation president Sunil Gulati denies the United States is entertaining the idea of a jointly hosted World Cup with Mexico and claims the USSF has made no such offer to Mexico.

“WE HAVEN’T MADE A DECISION ABOUT THE [2026] WORLD CUP. UNTIL WE KNOW WHAT THE RULES ARE OF THE BID PROCESS — WHICH WON’T BE UNTIL OCTOBER AT THE EARLIEST — WE’RE NOT GOING TO BE MAKING A DECISION.”

“AND WE CERTAINLY HAVEN’T HAD ANY FORMAL DISCUSSIONS WITH THE MEXICAN FEDERATION AT THIS POINT.”

Sunil Gulati, United States Soccer Federation president

The World Cup may be returning to the North America sooner rather than later. The United States and Mexico are considering a bid to jointly host the World Cup in 2026.

Newly minted FIFA boss Gianni Infantino is a big supporter of the proposal, which first manifested itself in a public capacity at Soccerex, the world’s biggest soccer convention, in Mexico City this week.

Some official confirmation came via John Motta, a board member of the United States Soccer Federation,

“IT COULD BE A POSITIVE MOVE FOR THE GAME IN BOTH COUNTRIES, AND IT’S ALSO A VERY EXCITING PROPOSITION FOR FIFA. WE WILL NOW GO AWAY AND FORMULATE A TIMETABLE FOR FURTHER DISCUSSIONS.”

“BUT WHATEVER HAPPENS, WE WILL BID FOR THE 2026 WORLD CUP — EITHER JOINTLY OR WE WILL GO IT ALONE.”

John Motta, U.S.S.F. board member

Decio de Maria, president of the Mexican Football Federation, had a private meeting with FIFA president Gianni Infantino last weekend to discuss the possibility of a joint Mexico-U.S. bid.

“MR. INFANTINO WAS VERY ENTHUSIASTIC ABOUT MY IDEA FOR A JOINT BID AND WANTS ME TO PURSUE THIS FURTHER.”

Decio de Maria, president of Mexican Football Federation

FIFA has not allowed joint bids since the 2002 World Cup was c0-hosted by Japan and South Korea, however the organization announced this week that it would entertain

A joint USA-Mexico World Cup would be awesome. Though the countries are bitter rivals, they need each other – just like Joker and the Batman.

Mexico has held the edge traditionally, and they’re almost unbeatable at Estadio Azteca, a veritable fortress in the suburbs of Mexico City.

Perched at a soul sucking altitude of 7,349 feet, Estadio Azteca has a capacity of over over 95,000 people, making it the third largest soccer stadium in the world.

However, U.S. soccer continues to trend in the right direction and the gulf in skill level and quality of play between the two countries is rapidly closing.

And don’t forget that the 1994 World Cup that the USA hosted is still the best attended World Cup of all time.

If the stars align, and it sounds like they are, we’re all in for a treat in 2026.